The British army bomb disposal unit defused a bomb found under the vehicle of a police officer on Thursday in a village near the town of Derry, in the northwest of Northern Ireland, according to the police.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said that had the device exploded, it could have caused the "death or serious injury" of the police officer, Efe news agency reported.
Though no individual or group has claimed responsibility for the attempted attack, it may have been a plot by a member of dissident spin-offs of the inactive Irish Republican Army opposing the peace process in Ireland.
A spokesperson for PSNI said the area where the bomb was found was closed to traffic, while the authorities evacuated 15 homes due for security reasons.